There are some conversations in the church that require more than conviction. They require humility, patience, prayer, and love.

The question of whether women should serve as lead pastors is one of those conversations.

Faithful Christians who love Jesus, honor Scripture, and believe deeply in the authority of God’s Word have reached different conclusions on this issue. Some believe the pastoral office is reserved exclusively for men, and some go so far as to describe female pastoral leadership as a violation of God’s design. Others, including me, believe God calls, gifts, and empowers both men and women to shepherd, teach, lead, and serve His church.

I do not hold this belief because culture pressured me into it. I do not believe Scripture is outdated or that Paul’s words can simply be ignored. I believe women can serve as lead pastors because I see God using women throughout the biblical story, and because I believe the difficult passages must be interpreted alongside the whole counsel of Scripture.

The question is not whether we will obey the Bible.

The question is whether certain restrictions were intended for every woman in every church for all time, or whether Paul was correcting specific problems involving false teaching, disorder, spiritual immaturity, and the improper use of authority.

That distinction matters.

When a Woman’s Teaching Changed My Life

This is not merely an academic issue for me. It is personal.

When I entered seminary, Beth Moore’s teaching became deeply meaningful and transformative in my life. I loved the way she approached Scripture with passion, depth, reverence, and expectancy. She did not simply communicate information. She awakened a hunger in me to search the Word, understand its context, and believe that God still speaks through Scripture today.

Her teaching challenged me, encouraged me, and helped shape the way I approached my own theological education.

I never sat under her teaching and thought, “This would be more biblical if a man were saying it.”

I experienced the fruit of a woman who had devoted her life to studying Scripture, loving Jesus, and helping others understand the Word of God. Her teaching did not lead me away from biblical truth. It drew me more deeply into it.

That is why I was deeply troubled by the way John MacArthur and others publicly spoke about her during a conference panel. When MacArthur was asked for his response to the name Beth Moore, he answered, “Go home.” He then argued that no biblical case could be made for a woman preacher and compared her ability to communicate effectively with the skills someone might use to sell jewelry on television.

Another panelist, Phil Johnson, accused her of narcissism and criticized the way she placed herself within biblical narratives, suggesting that she was preaching herself rather than Christ.

There is room within the body of Christ for sincere disagreement about women preaching and serving as pastors. There is room for careful exegesis, theological debate, and strongly held convictions. But disagreement does not require degradation.

A woman who has spent decades studying Scripture, teaching the Bible, and helping millions of people grow in their love for Jesus should not be reduced to a punchline about selling jewelry. Telling her to “go home” before an audience that erupts in laughter does not demonstrate biblical courage or theological conviction. It communicates public contempt. Hearing that laughter made me sick because it did not sound like gracious disagreement. It sounded like misogyny being celebrated.

We can defend our convictions without demeaning another servant of Christ.

We can believe someone has interpreted a passage incorrectly without dismissing that person’s entire ministry.

We can debate a woman’s qualifications for the pulpit without speaking as though her only appropriate contribution is inside her home or on a television shopping channel.

And we should be especially cautious about accusing someone of narcissism merely because she invites readers to locate themselves within the biblical story.

Responsible Bible teaching must begin with what the text meant in its original context. We should never make ourselves the center of Scripture. Jesus is the center. However, faithful application also asks where we stand within the truth the passage reveals.

When I read about Peter stepping out of the boat, I am invited to examine my own faith and fear. Peter had to trust the voice of Jesus before he could see where that step would lead. In the same way, faith often asks me to believe God for what I cannot yet see and to keep walking when the waves around me say I should be afraid.

When I read about Elijah collapsing beneath the broom tree, I recognize seasons of exhaustion in my own life. His story reminds me that we are whole people, and we must care for our minds, bodies, souls, and spirits. Sometimes God’s provision comes through prayer and revelation. Other times, it comes through rest, nourishment, silence, and the strength to begin again.

When I read about the prodigal son, I am invited to consider where I have wandered and how the Father continues calling me home. I am also reminded that the father did not stand at a distance with folded arms. He ran toward his returning son, embraced him, and restored him. That story teaches me not only about repentance, but also about the extravagant grace of a Father who is eager to welcome His children home.

When I read about Martha’s anxiety, Thomas’s doubts, David’s failures, or Joseph’s suffering, I am not claiming that their stories are identical to mine. I am allowing God to use their stories to reveal what is happening within my own heart.

That is not narcissism. It is application.

It is allowing the timeless truth of Scripture to move beyond information and become transformation.

Every preacher does this. Every writer does this. Every pastor who asks, “Where are you in this story?” is helping people move from observation to transformation.

Beth Moore helped me do that during a formative season of my life. She helped me see that Scripture was not simply an ancient record to analyze. It was the living Word of God, able to expose my heart, deepen my faith, and transform the way I lived.

That experience does not settle every interpretive question, but fruit matters.

Jesus said we would recognize people by their fruit. When someone’s ministry consistently produces greater love for Christ, deeper engagement with Scripture, repentance, spiritual growth, and a desire to serve God, we should be careful about dismissing that ministry simply because God chose to speak through a woman.

This does not mean Beth Moore, John MacArthur, or any other teacher is beyond examination. Every teacher should be tested by Scripture. Every pastor can make mistakes. Every ministry needs accountability.

But criticism should be truthful, proportional, and expressed with the character of Christ.

Public mockery is not the fruit of discernment.

Condescension is not a spiritual gift.

Humiliating someone does not make our interpretation more biblical.

Sometimes our theology is challenged not because Scripture has changed, but because God allows us to witness something that forces us to reconsider whether we have interpreted Scripture as carefully as we thought.

I cannot deny the fruit Beth Moore’s teaching produced in my own life. As I entered seminary, God used the voice of a woman to deepen my hunger for His Word. Rather than drawing me away from Scripture, she helped drive me further into it.

For that, I remain deeply grateful.

Called Together From the Beginning

In Genesis 1, God created humanity in His image, male and female, and gave them the responsibility to steward His creation together.

“God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it’” (Genesis 1:28, NIV).

The calling was given to both of them.

The woman is later described as a “helper suitable” for the man. Sometimes that word has been interpreted to mean a subordinate assistant, but the Hebrew word for helper, ezer, is frequently used in Scripture to describe God Himself as the help of His people.

The word does not imply weakness. It communicates strength, partnership, and necessary support.

The domination described after the fall, where the man would rule over the woman, was not presented as God’s perfect design. It was part of the brokenness sin introduced into human relationships.

Redemption should not deepen the effects of the fall. Redemption should begin restoring what sin fractured.

God Has Always Used Women to Lead

Throughout Scripture, God called women into influential roles.

Miriam was a prophet.

Deborah was both a prophet and a judge who led Israel during a time of national crisis.

Huldah interpreted the Word of God for the king’s representatives and helped guide the spiritual reforms of Josiah.

Esther exercised courageous leadership that helped save an entire nation.

Some say these women were exceptions. Perhaps they were exceptional, but an exception still reveals something important. Being a woman did not prevent God from entrusting someone with spiritual authority and leadership.

God has never been limited by the categories people create.

When He chooses someone, He sees the heart. When He calls someone, He provides the grace. When He empowers someone, no human tradition can erase that anointing.

Jesus Elevated Women

Jesus entered a culture in which women were often pushed to the margins, yet He repeatedly honored them.

He taught Mary as a disciple at His feet.

He engaged the Samaritan woman in one of the deepest theological conversations recorded in the Gospels, and she became the first person to whom Jesus openly revealed that He was the Messiah.

He welcomed women among His followers and received their support in ministry.

He defended women who were shamed by others.

After His resurrection, Jesus appeared first to women and entrusted them with the message that would become the foundation of Christian proclamation:

“He is risen.”

In a culture where a woman’s testimony was often discounted, Jesus chose women to carry the news that changed the world.

That does not seem accidental.

Pentecost Poured Out the Spirit on Sons and Daughters

On the Day of Pentecost, Peter explained what was happening by quoting the prophet Joel:

“Your sons and daughters will prophesy… Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy” (Acts 2:17–18, NIV).

The Spirit was not poured out only on sons.

The Spirit was not poured out only on men who held recognized titles.

God poured out His Spirit on sons and daughters, men and women, young and old.

The New Testament lists gifts such as teaching, leadership, prophecy, encouragement, shepherding, wisdom, and administration. Yet Scripture does not provide one list for men and another list for women.

The Holy Spirit distributes gifts according to His will.

If God gives a woman the ability to teach, shepherd, lead, discern, and care for His people, should the church automatically assume that He will never call her to use those gifts as a pastor?

We must be careful not to ask God to fit inside the boundaries we have built.

Paul Worked Alongside Women

Paul is often presented as though he opposed women in ministry, but his own letters tell a more complicated story.

Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila, helped instruct Apollos, a gifted and educated male preacher, “more adequately” in the way of God.

Phoebe is identified as a minister of the church and a benefactor of many, including Paul.

Junia is described prominently in connection with the apostles.

Euodia and Syntyche “contended” beside Paul in the work of the gospel.

Paul names numerous women who labored, served, sacrificed, hosted churches, supported ministry, and advanced the mission of Christ.

These were not passive observers.

They were coworkers in the gospel.

Any interpretation of Paul’s restrictive passages must account for the women Paul trusted, commended, and partnered with in ministry.

“A Woman Should Learn”

First Timothy 2:12 is usually at the center of this debate:

“I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.”

We should not ignore that verse. We should study it carefully.

However, before Paul says what he is not permitting, he gives a direct command:

“A woman should learn in quietness and full submission” (1 Timothy 2:11, NIV).

Those words deserve more attention than they often receive.

Paul did not begin by saying, “A woman should remain ignorant.”

He did not say, “A woman should never study theology.”

He did not say, “A woman should depend forever on whatever a man chooses to teach her.”

He said, “A woman should learn.”

In the ancient world, men were generally far more likely to receive formal religious and theological instruction. Women were often educated indirectly through fathers, husbands, or other male members of the household. In many settings, the responsibility for religious instruction rested primarily with men.

Against that background, Paul’s command is significant.

He is not merely regulating women. He is commanding that they be discipled.

Let them learn.

Let them hear the teaching.

Let them understand doctrine.

Let them become grounded in the truth.

Let them receive the theological formation that had often been reserved primarily for men.

If men had previously been expected to carry most of the responsibility for teaching the women in their families, Paul’s command represents an important development. Women were not simply to receive secondhand fragments of theological knowledge. They were to become serious students of the faith themselves.

Paul was opening the door to deeper discipleship.

It is also possible that Paul’s immediate restriction was connected to the fact that some women were attempting to teach before they had been properly instructed.

The order of the passage matters.

First, let her learn.

Then comes the restriction concerning teaching and authority.

That may suggest Paul was addressing an educational and doctrinal problem rather than issuing a permanent declaration that no woman, regardless of maturity, training, calling, or gifting, could ever teach or lead.

The entire letter of 1 Timothy addresses false teaching, spiritual disorder, and unhealthy influences in the church at Ephesus. Paul had instructed Timothy to remain there specifically to stop certain people from teaching false doctrines.

Second Timothy also describes false teachers entering households and influencing women who were “always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth.”

In that setting, Paul’s concern may not have been that women were incapable of teaching. His concern may have been that people who had not yet learned sound doctrine were attempting to teach others.

That principle still matters today.

No one should teach before learning.

No one should lead without spiritual maturity.

No one should assume authority while remaining vulnerable to false doctrine.

But that standard should apply to men and women alike.

We should not take a warning against untrained or disorderly teaching and turn it into a permanent prohibition against every qualified woman.

What About Adam and Eve?

Paul continues by referring to Adam and Eve, noting that Adam was formed first and that Eve was deceived.

Those who oppose women pastors often argue that Paul’s appeal to creation proves the restriction is universal.

That deserves serious consideration.

However, Paul may also be using Eve as an example of what happens when someone is deceived and then influences another person. If women in Ephesus were being misled by false teachers, Eve would have been an especially relevant biblical warning.

The lesson may not be, “Every woman is more easily deceived than every man.”

Scripture provides more than enough examples of men being deceived, foolish, disobedient, passive, and spiritually blind.

Adam was not absent from the story of the fall. He stood there, received the fruit, and ate. Eve was deceived, but Adam knowingly failed to intervene.

If we are going to use Genesis to evaluate spiritual leadership, we should examine both failures.

The warning may be that those who have been deceived should not be placed in a teaching position until they have learned the truth. It may also be a warning against the passivity of those who know the truth but fail to act.

The solution to deception is discipleship.

The solution to ignorance is instruction.

The solution to false teaching is sound doctrine.

That is true for men and women.

Understanding “Assume Authority”

The word translated “assume authority” is uncommon in the New Testament and has generated significant discussion. It may include the idea of seizing, dominating, controlling, or improperly exercising authority.

This does not mean every form of leadership is condemned.

There is a difference between spiritual leadership and domination.

There is a difference between shepherding and controlling.

There is a difference between being called into responsibility and seizing authority for yourself.

Jesus prohibited domineering leadership for everyone.

He told His disciples that the rulers of the Gentiles “lord it over” others, but that this should not be the pattern among His followers. Kingdom leadership is expressed through service, humility, sacrifice, and love.

Therefore, if Paul was condemning domineering or improperly assumed authority, that command remains relevant to both men and women.

No pastor should dominate God’s people.

No leader should manipulate others.

No teacher should use Scripture to elevate himself or herself above accountability.

The issue is not whether someone is male or female. The issue is whether that person leads like Jesus.

Understanding the Command to Be Silent

The same principle applies to 1 Corinthians 14, where women are told to remain silent.

Just a few chapters earlier, Paul gives instructions for women who pray and prophesy publicly.

Paul cannot be demanding absolute silence in one passage while regulating their public participation in another.

First Corinthians 14 actually tells several groups to be silent under certain circumstances.

Someone speaking in tongues should be silent if there is no interpreter.

A prophet should be silent when another person receives a revelation.

Women causing disruption or asking disorderly questions were also told to be silent.

The command was situational. It was intended to restore order in worship, not permanently silence every woman in every church.

Paul was not removing women from participation. He was teaching the entire congregation how to participate in a way that honored God and strengthened the church.

The Qualifications Are About Character

First Timothy 3 describes an overseer as “the husband of one wife.” Some understand this to mean that a pastor must always be male.

But the phrase can also be understood as describing marital faithfulness, a “one-woman man.”

The same passage speaks about managing children well. Yet most churches do not require every pastor to be married or to have multiple children.

Why?

Because the heart of the passage is character.

A pastor must be faithful, self-controlled, hospitable, spiritually mature, able to teach, and respected by others.

Those qualities are not exclusive to men.

A woman can be faithful.

A woman can be spiritually mature.

A woman can be able to teach.

A woman can shepherd with wisdom, courage, humility, and compassion.

The qualifications should not be weakened for anyone, but neither should they be interpreted in a way that adds a prohibition the passage may not have been intended to establish.

Before We Disqualify Women, We Must Qualify Men

There is another part of this conversation the church must be willing to confront honestly.

Before we use the qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 to declare that a woman cannot serve as a lead pastor, we should make sure we are applying those same qualifications rigorously to the men who already hold the position.

Paul did not merely describe the gender of an overseer. He described the kind of life a spiritual leader must live.

A pastor must be above reproach.

He must be faithful in marriage.

He must be temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, and able to teach.

He must not be violent, quarrelsome, greedy, arrogant, or controlled by alcohol.

He must manage his household well.

He must be spiritually mature and have a good reputation with those outside the church.

Those are not suggestions. They are biblical qualifications.

Yet the church has sometimes emphasized the word “husband” while overlooking the rest of the passage. We have been quick to say that a woman cannot pastor while making excuses for men who are arrogant, domineering, emotionally unhealthy, spiritually immature, unfaithful to their families, or unable to shepherd people with compassion.

That is inconsistent.

If we are going to be strict about gender, we must be equally strict about character.

A man does not become qualified simply because he is a man.

Being male is not the same as being mature.

Possessing a title is not the same as possessing the heart of a shepherd.

Standing behind a pulpit does not automatically mean someone is living above reproach.

Before the church tells a gifted and faithful woman that she cannot lead, it should ask whether the men it has placed in leadership are actually meeting the standards Scripture requires.

For centuries, women have often been the ones holding churches, ministries, homes, and families together. They have prayed when others stopped praying. They have served when others disappeared. They have taught children, discipled believers, cared for the sick, supported missionaries, raised families in the faith, and kept ministries functioning behind the scenes.

In too many situations, women stepped forward because men had stepped back.

While some men were absent, passive, spiritually disengaged, or asleep at the wheel, faithful women continued carrying the work of the kingdom. They did not always receive titles, recognition, platforms, or public honor, but they kept showing up.

They opened their homes.

They taught the Bible.

They led prayer meetings.

They cared for struggling families.

They raised sons and daughters who loved Jesus.

They kept churches alive through seasons of hardship, war, persecution, poverty, and cultural change.

The church has often depended on the leadership of women while refusing to call it leadership.

We have accepted their labor while questioning their authority.

We have celebrated their faithfulness while limiting their calling.

We have trusted women to hold families together, disciple generations, teach theology, lead ministries, counsel the broken, and carry the spiritual weight of a congregation, yet sometimes told them they could never be trusted to serve as its pastor.

That contradiction deserves examination.

This does not mean men are unnecessary or that male leadership should be diminished. The church desperately needs godly men who will pray, lead, serve, protect, disciple, and take responsibility for their homes and congregations.

But biblical leadership cannot be reduced to being male.

It must be demonstrated through character, faithfulness, sacrifice, humility, sound doctrine, and the fruit of the Spirit.

Before we use Scripture to close the door on women, we should make sure we are not holding women to a restriction while allowing men to escape the qualifications.

The standard must be consistent.

Does this person love Jesus?

Does this person handle Scripture faithfully?

Does this person demonstrate humility and integrity?

Does this person care for people?

Does this person lead like Christ?

Is there spiritual fruit?

Has God clearly gifted and called this person to shepherd His people?

Those are the questions the church should be asking.

We should never lower the biblical standard to make room for anyone. But we should also never use part of the biblical standard to exclude women while ignoring the parts that disqualify unfaithful men.

We Must Leave Room for God to Call

This conversation should never become a battle between men and women, and it should never become a battle between one denomination and another.

Faithful believers from different traditions have studied these passages carefully and reached different conclusions. We may disagree strongly, but we should not automatically question one another’s love for Jesus, commitment to Scripture, or desire to honor God simply because we interpret these passages differently.

The goal is not to defeat another denomination, embarrass another church, or prove that we are more faithful than someone else.

The goal is to seek truth with humility, listen with grace, and remain united around the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We can hold deep convictions without becoming divisive.

We can defend our interpretation without attacking the character of those who disagree.

We can believe God calls women to lead while still honoring brothers and sisters who understand these passages differently.

The church does not need men pushed aside so women can rise. It does not need denominations tearing one another apart over sincere theological disagreement. The church needs men and women serving together, and believers from different traditions treating one another with humility, respect, and love.

There are gifted men whom God has called to pastor.

There are gifted women whom God has called to pastor.

There are also men and women who may desire leadership but are not yet ready for it.

Calling must always be tested by character, sound doctrine, spiritual fruit, humility, and faithful service.

Gender should not excuse a lack of character, and it should not erase a genuine calling.

We should be slow to tell someone whom God has gifted, “There is no place for you here.”

We may discover that the very voice we silenced was one God intended to use to heal, teach, challenge, and shepherd His people.

I know women teachers have shaped my own walk with Christ. Beth Moore’s ministry strengthened my love for Scripture during a formative season of my life. I cannot deny that fruit simply because it does not fit neatly into someone else’s interpretation.

The church is strongest when the whole body is permitted to function.

The hand should not tell the foot, “I do not need you.”

The eye should not tell the ear, “Your contribution does not matter.”

And the church should not tell Spirit-filled daughters that their calling can only go so far.

When God pours out His Spirit, He pours it out on sons and daughters.

When God gives gifts, He gives them according to His wisdom.

When God calls a shepherd, our responsibility is not to protect tradition at all costs.

Our responsibility is to recognize the fruit, test the calling, honor Scripture, and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Prayer:

Father, thank You for calling both sons and daughters to participate in Your mission. Give us humility as we study Your Word and grace when we disagree with one another. Protect us from allowing tradition, pride, fear, or culture to speak louder than Your Spirit.

Thank You for the faithful women who have taught us, encouraged us, challenged us, and helped us understand Your Word more deeply. Thank You for every daughter You have called to preach, teach, shepherd, serve, and lead.

Help us apply Your standards faithfully and consistently. Do not allow us to excuse immaturity, arrogance, passivity, or unfaithfulness simply because someone is male. Raise up men and women who are above reproach, grounded in truth, filled with compassion, and committed to leading like Jesus.

Teach us to disagree without becoming divided. Help churches and denominations treat one another with grace, respect, and humility. Keep us united around the gospel, even when we reach different conclusions about difficult passages.

Help us recognize the gifts You have placed within every member of Your body. Raise up faithful pastors, teachers, leaders, and servants who walk in character, truth, humility, and love.

Give courage to every woman You have called, and give Your church the wisdom to recognize and affirm Your work in her life. May everything we do bring honor to Jesus and strengthen His church.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.